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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22838452">The Ghost of You</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheFibreWitch/pseuds/TheFibreWitch'>TheFibreWitch</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Prodigal Son (TV 2019)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst with a Happy Ending, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Malcolm has no self preservation, Whump, mentions of abuse</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 08:01:22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,114</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22838452</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheFibreWitch/pseuds/TheFibreWitch</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When Malcolm falls into a coma after discovering important information for the case, the team feels at a loss on how to move forward. Though Malcolm is out of commission, the team can't help but feel his presence with them as they try to unravel the mystery. All hope for catching their killer seems to be lost until they start finding clues seemingly left by someone, or something.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>67</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello!<br/>This is my first ever fic! With TONS of support from the Discord, I was encouraged to give writing a try. Enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Malcolm sighed to himself as he boxed up evidence and photos from the most recent case. Gil had left him in the precinct to clean up as the rest of the team headed to the local library where the suspect worked to make an arrest. It was a cut and dry case; jealous/abusive boyfriend kills girlfriend in a fit of passion and rage. The team didn’t need him there to make the arrest. So he shuffled around the office packing up. But, then something caught his eye in a personal photo of the victim. He hadn’t noticed before but in the background of the photo, there was a man, just at the edge of the frame. He wore a baseball cap, but his face… Malcolm was sure he’d seen it before. He raced to the archives room where previous cases were kept. He dug through boxes from a month back and pulled a box out. The case was eerily identical to their current one, dead girlfriend, guilty boyfriend. He opened the box and rummaged through the photos.</p><p><em>There</em>.</p><p>Again, in the background was the same man. Malcolm thought back to the case, he had felt off about the arrest then, and he now knew why. The team, this time with Malcolm, had gone to the bar where the boyfriend worked to make the arrest, Malcolm then realized why the mysterious man had looked so familiar, <em>he had been at the bar at the time of the arrest. </em>Malcolm rushed to call Gil, but it went to voicemail.</p><p>“Gil! The man you are arresting is NOT our killer! I believe the real killer is there at the library, he seems to like to watch the boyfriend’s arrest. I’m on my way!”</p><p>----</p><p>Malcolm burst through the library doors to see Dani and JT with their weapons drawn and aimed at the boyfriend who was standing on top of the circulation desk and had a gun pointed at Gil.</p><p>“First my girlfriend is <em>murdered</em>, and now you’re trying to pin it on me?! I LOVED her, I will <em>die</em> before you put this on me!” he shouted hysterically. Gil stood with his hands in front of him.</p><p>“We just need to ask you some questions Dave, that’s all.”</p><p>Dave put the gun to his own head. “I would rather DIE than be framed!”</p><p>All the library patrons gasped and squirmed towards the walls, except for one person: a man in a baseball cap, who was looking on at the scene with a grin on his face. Malcolm tried to avoid eye contact with the man as he slowly approached the circulation desk from between the stacks.</p><p>“Hey JT.” Malcolm said lowly, JT who was crouched behind the edge of a bookshelf whipped his head around.</p><p>“Bright? What the hell are you doing here man?” he hissed, his gun still pointed at Dave.</p><p>“I wanted to let you know you have the wrong guy.”</p><p>“That couldn’t have waited?” JT glared at Malcolm.</p><p>“Well, no. Because I think the real killer is on his way to becoming a serial killer, oh and he’s here too.” Malcolm said matter-of-factly.</p><p>“What!?” JT had lowered his gun at this point, but Dani and Gil were still trying to talk Dave down.</p><p>“Yeah, he has a baseball cap on and he’s right over – wait, he was just there!” Malcolm stood up suddenly.</p><p>“Bright!” JT hissed and grabbed at him, pulling him back down between the shelves. “Don’t do that!”</p><p>“Sorry, right. Well, let me try to talk to Dave.” He popped up again, ignoring JT’s protests. “Hi there Dave!” Malcolm chirped. Dave, who still had the gun to his head, snapped his attention to Malcolm and pointed the gun at him. “Who are you!?”</p><p>“Woah, easy there, I’m just here to talk.” Malcolm put his hands up to his chest, his eyes scanning the room for a baseball cap.</p><p>“You’re lying!” Dave cried. “I didn’t kill Jenna! I loved her!”</p><p>“I know you didn’t, I know who did though,” Malcolm said, meeting the eyes of Gil and Dani. Gil looked ready to strangle Malcolm and Dani wore a stony expression. Out of the corner of Malcolm’s eye, he saw movement near the Archives/ Special Collections area of the library. Looking back at Dani, who was now out of Dave’s line of sight, he gave a small nod.</p><p>“You really think I didn’t kill her? Are you a cop?” Dave faltered, lowering the gun in his confusion. Dani slowly moved towards the edge of the desk.</p><p>“I’m not a cop, and yes, I believe you. I know who did it, you can trust me.” Malcolm said slowly, glancing again toward the archives. Dave noticed and stiffened, Dani was right behind him now.</p><p>“What’s over there?” Dave shouted, “Is this a trick!?” he raised the gun again as Dani tackled him from behind. The gun went off and hit a large copy of an encyclopedia near Malcolm’s arm. Dani got control of Dave and wrestled him off the desk as Gil and JT closed in.</p><p>“Bright! What the hell were you thinking?” Gil huffed as he secured Dave’s gun, but Malcolm was no longer standing there, instead, he was making a beeline for the far side of the library. “Dammit Bright! JT, you got Dave?” Gil asked.</p><p>“Yeah, go! He said he thought the killer was here!” JT said.</p><p>“Dani, let’s go get our idiot.” Gil sighed, she nodded and followed Gil towards the archives.</p><p>----</p><p>Malcolm made it into the archives room, it was bigger than he had guessed.</p><p>“Hey! Anyone back here?” he called out. He slowly walked his way through the metal shelving of the room. It was cold and quiet. “Hello?” he called, glancing between the rows. Suddenly his vision went white and pain blossomed at his temple. He stumbled and fell, looking up at his attacker. The man in the baseball cap stood over him with a piece of metal shelving in his hand. Malcolm felt sluggish and a little sick as the room spun. The man stooped down and smiled at him before bringing the shelf down hard onto Malcolm’s head. Everything went black. The last thing he heard before fully slipping away was Gil’s voice yelling his name, and then he heard nothing.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Malcolm slowly opened his eyes against the harsh lights, the tell-tale sterile smell of a hospital filled his nose.</p>
<p><em>My favorite place.</em> he groaned internally. He couldn’t quite remember what happened. He fully blinked his eyes open and for the first time in a long time, he felt well-rested.</p>
<p><em>I wonder what they gave me to let me sleep so well.</em> he mused. He could hear a monitor beeping rhythmically beside him as he looked around, he also heard faint voices coming from the hall, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying. He was about to call out when the door opened and a nurse, Gil and his mother came into the room. Jessica couldn’t hide the look of anguish on her face as she turned her head into Gil’s shoulder.</p>
<p>“He looks awful, my poor Malcolm.” Jessica’s muffled voice was raspy as if she had been crying. Malcolm sat up, a little confused about her reaction to his appearance, he felt fine enough, he wasn’t even sore at all. He also noticed that the three at the foot of his bed wouldn’t look at him. He was about to speak when Gil said, “How long will he be like this?”</p>
<p>Very confused now, Malcolm looked at the nurse.</p>
<p>“We’re not sure, the head trauma was very severe. You’re very lucky you got him to a hospital when you did.” The nurse replied.</p>
<p><em>Head trauma?</em> Malcolm felt cold. He closed his eyes and flashes erupted behind his eyelids. A baseball cap, a man’s sickening smile, Gil’s far away voice… Malcolm snapped his eyes open. He had been attacked by the killer. But… he was fine now, right? He was awake and felt pretty good for a severe head trauma patient.</p>
<p>“For now, he’ll be in a coma until he can wake up, from there we’ll have to make sure that the trauma hasn’t caused any permanent damage.” The nurse prattled on. Gil’s face was pale, and Jessica inhaled sharply. Malcolm sat still, dumbstruck.</p>
<p>He calmed himself and opened his mouth, “Mother? I’m right here.” His voice sounded small. No one reacted. “Gil?” he tried again, louder; the results were the same. There was a roaring sound in his ears, the heart monitor started beeping faster, only then did Gil and Jessica look at him.</p>
<p>“His hand! It twitched!” Jessica cried.</p>
<p> The nurse looked unsurprised. “That’s normal, I’m sorry to say, he will be unconscious for some time… I’m very sorry.”</p>
<p>Jessica’s face fell.</p>
<p>“But I am awake!” Malcolm said, he sat up further, ready to get out of bed, he went to remove the IV and other wires hooked to him that would prevent him from getting up, but when he looked down at his arm he stopped cold. Below his arm was… <em>his arm? </em>The arm he moved was free of any wire and sensor, but the <em>other</em>… the one still on the bed was clearly hooked up to the monitors. He closed his eyes and tried to think.</p>
<p>
  <em>I’m dreaming, I must be dreaming. This makes no sense. I’m in a coma? That’s not possible. I’m wide awake and completely fine.</em>
</p>
<p>He laid back and looked at the ceiling as he recalled that sometimes coma patients had out of body experiences, was this what he was experiencing? Or was it all a dream?</p>
<p><em>No</em>, he thought, <em>coma patients don’t dream, they just can experience vivid hallucinations</em>. While he was puzzling all this out in his head, the nurse, Gil, and Jessica started to leave the room.</p>
<p>“Wait!” he started, then remembered they hadn’t taken notice of him before when he had called out. Deciding on exploring this confusing situation, rather than staying in the hospital, he pushed himself out of bed and started walking towards the door, when he turned to look back at the hospital bed.</p>
<p>Malcolm couldn’t begin to describe the feeling he had when he saw a body still lying there. <em>His body</em>. He looked at himself, transfixed. His mother was right, he did look awful. Large purple circles shadowed his eyes, darker than he had ever seen in the mirror, and a thick white bandage was wrapped fully around his head. He had a breathing tube in his mouth, and he looked… dead. Malcolm turned away from the bed and followed Gil and his mother into the hall.</p>
<p>----</p>
<p>He found them in the waiting area, where they were joined by Ainsley, Dani, and JT.</p>
<p>“How is he?” Dani asked stoically, her nose slightly red. <em>Had she been crying? </em>Malcolm thought.</p>
<p>“Not great, but he’s stable,” Gil replied tiredly.</p>
<p>“Will he ever learn not to run headfirst into danger?” JT grumbled.</p>
<p>“He’ll pull through, he’s tough,” Ainsley said, moving to comfort Jessica. Malcolm hated seeing everyone like this, he hated that he had caused them this pain. They began to gather their things to leave. Jessica and Ainsley said their goodbyes and walked towards the nurses’ station to get more information. Malcolm watched them go, wishing he could touch them, hug them, tell them he was okay, and everything was fine. But everything wasn’t fine. He was in the hospital, unconscious, or at least his body was anyway, and he, well, he wasn’t quite sure <em>what</em> he was.</p>
<p>“Have we gotten anything on the guy who did this?” Gil asked once Jessica and Ainsley were out of earshot.</p>
<p>“There were cameras in the library, but we couldn’t get a good look at his face,” JT replied.</p>
<p>“Did Bright happen to say anything more about the killer? For all we know this guy could be long gone by now.” Gil pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.</p>
<p>“No, just said he was in the library and he was wearing a ball cap.” JT sighed.</p>
<p>“Damn, of course. Just our luck.” Gil looked at the ceiling in frustration.</p>
<p>“The only thing we know is that this guy likes to watch the victim’s significant other’s arrest that he seemingly framed them for, based on Bright’s voicemail to Gil,” Dani added.</p>
<p>“Right, well I guess let’s head back to the precinct, maybe Bright left some indication on how he figured out the real killer.” Gil sighed.</p>
<p>“We have Dave in custody, do you want me to question him to see if he remembers anyone strange hanging around his girlfriend before her death?” Dani asked.</p>
<p>“Sure, it’s our best bet right now,” Gil replied.</p>
<p>“Man, of course, Bright would get himself taken out of commission and be the only one with all the answers.” JT shook his head.</p>
<p>“Well, I don’t have <em>all</em> the answers,” Malcolm grumbled out loud, of course, they didn’t hear him though.</p>
<p>“Let’s get going, maybe we can catch a break,” Gil said, moving towards the exit. Malcolm looked back towards his hospital room, and then to the team.</p>
<p><em>Alright</em>, he thought, <em>let’s go solve a crime… somehow</em>. He followed them out of the hospital. Nobody, not even Malcolm, noticed a man get up from a bench and put on a baseball cap.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you all so much for the positive feedback! I had no idea how this was going to go, and I'm so happy you all are enjoying it!<br/>I want to give a special thanks to the Prodigal Son Whump Discord for being super supportive. I also want to thank TheFandomChic4 for proofreading Ch.1 and to sonshineandshowers for proofreading this chapter! Enjoy!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Alright, I need you guys to see if Bright left anything behind,” Gil said to Dani and JT as they were walking towards the precinct.</p><p>“It’s kinda strange being here without Bright trying to tell us how we missed such an obvious detail.” JT huffed.</p><p>“It is a little strange that he’s not here with us to solve the case,” Dani agreed sullenly, “though I can’t help but feel like he’s here with us anyway, weird right?”</p><p>“Stranger things have happened, Dani,” Malcolm said out loud, painfully aware no one would hear him. He trailed behind the team as they entered the building. As Malcolm passed through the threshold, sharp pain in his head made him wince and double over.</p><p>“Malcolm, my boy!” A cheery voice exclaimed, making Malcolm’s blood run cold. He opened his eyes and saw worn hardwood floors under his feet. The type you’d find in a cabin…</p><p>Malcolm stood up and looked around. He was in a cabin, but he had just been at the precinct.</p><p><em>Hallucinations? Try not to think too hard about it</em>, he thought, trying to calm himself, <em>it’s just my subconscious messing with me</em>.</p><p>“Oh, but are you sure it’s just in your head?”</p><p>Malcolm spun around to see his father standing behind him.</p><p>“How did – what is this?” Malcolm stammered out.</p><p>“What are you talking about, son? It’s our favorite camping spot! Oh, we made so many fond memories here.” Martin gave a wide smile, his eyes crinkled at the edges.</p><p>“Fond?” Malcolm retorted, “I don’t recall any happy memories from this place.”</p><p>“Oh, come on little Malcolm.” A gruff voice came from further in the cabin. “Sure, you do, this is where you became a man, remember?” John was sitting next to a large steamer trunk; his hand was resting delicately on the lid as if it were a dog he was petting. The trunk began to rattle as banging and muffled cries came from within. Malcolm’s eyes widened in fear. He turned on his heel and ran out the door into the woods. He stole a glance behind him to see Martin and John standing on the cabin’s porch. Martin still wore his gigantic smile. Malcolm turned his attention in front of him and saw something that made him stop dead in his tracks. He’d burst through a clearing where he saw 23 mounds of dirt. They were all similar in shape and size. Breathing hard, he started to backpedal when a female’s voice whispered in his ear.</p><p>“Why didn’t you help us? Why didn’t you help me?”</p><p>Malcolm whirled around but saw no one. Feeling very panicked he tried to backtrack out of the clearing.</p><p>“<em>WHY DIDN’T YOU HELP ME MALCOLM?”</em></p><p>A shadowy figure emerged from behind a tree. Malcolm turned and tried to run, only to fall headlong into a hole that was next to the 23<sup>rd</sup> mound. Malcolm closed his eyes as he fell into the grave.</p><p>----</p><p>When Malcolm opened his eyes again, he was back in the precinct. Shaken by his experience, and unable to talk to someone, <em>anyone</em>, he stood still as the world moved around him. Movement in the corner of his eye made him snap out of it. The movement was Gil walking hastily to his office, cellphone to his ear. He looked like he was going to be sick. Malcolm followed Gil into the room.</p><p>“Jessica, please slow down, what happened?” Gil said into the phone, his voice strained. Malcolm could hear his mother’s voice frantically chattering on the line.</p><p>“What do you mean he stopped breathing!? Is he okay now?” Gil choked. Again, Malcolm found it odd to be listening in on a conversation about the state of his health.</p><p>“Okay, so they got him stable again?” Gil breathed a sigh, “Okay, I’ll come by soon, deep breaths Jessica, we’re going to get through this.” Malcolm’s heart broke as he heard a muffled sob through the phone. Gil hung up and slumped in his chair. Malcolm watched as he picked up a picture frame off his desk; it was a photo of a young Malcolm and Jackie, making cookies. Malcolm smiled at the memory.</p><p>“What have you gotten yourself into kid?” Gil said to the photo, “You can’t leave me, you’re all I have left.” Gil set the frame back down and closed his eyes. Malcolm’s heart squeezed in his chest as the man he looked up to broke down in front of him. Then, composing himself, Gil stood up with great effort and headed towards the conference room.</p><p>“Dani, JT, I’m headed back to the hospital, call me if you find anything.”</p><p>“You got it boss,” JT confirmed. Gil turned and walked towards the entrance of the precinct. Malcolm looked at Dani and JT, as they frantically dug through the boxes to find the clues that he failed to inform them of. He turned back and followed Gil out onto the sidewalk. Again, he was overcome with the urge to reach out and touch Gil, to let him know he was there, and he was sorry for causing this heartache. Malcolm decided to reach out anyway, knowing it didn’t matter what he did because he wasn’t really there. He was just an echo, just a <em>ghost</em>. He put his hand on Gil’s shoulder, and then immediately snatched his hand back in surprise. As soon as his hand had made contact with Gil, he got a sharp, electric shock that stung his fingertips. Gil also seemed surprised, because he had stopped dead in his tracks and spun around to see where the sudden sensation had come from.</p><p><em>Had he felt it too?</em> Malcolm wondered, still confused. Gil, also looking confused, turned back around, only to collide with a person walking by.</p><p>“Oh! Excuse me.” Gil said gruffly and pushed past the man whom he has run into. The man continued on his path and glanced up as he passed by Malcolm. Malcolm’s eyes widened.</p><p>
  <em>It’s Him!</em>
</p><p>The man, missing his baseball cap, strode past Gil and kept walking in the opposite direction. Malcolm didn’t even think twice. He turned and followed the man.</p><p><em>At least I don’t need backup this time. </em>Malcolm chuckled bitterly to himself as he tailed the man through the streets of New York.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>A shorter chapter today, I apologize for the delay I just moved this past week and I've been so busy! Thank you for your patience and I hope you enjoy!<br/>Thanks again to sonshineandshowers for helping me edit!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>tw, mentions of abuse</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Dani was mentally exhausted.</p>
<p>She had spent the last few hours digging through box after box to try to find a sliver of <em>something</em> that might lead to a break in the case. But she was wearing herself out, moving at a pace that was borderline frantic. She needed to keep herself busy though. She had to distract her mind from seeing Bright…</p>
<p><em>Malcolm,</em> lying on the floor of the library in a pool of his own blood as it pumped out of a nasty headwound.</p>
<p>She closed her eyes at the thought.</p>
<p>“You good?” JT asked gently, “You need a break? I don’t want you to crash.”</p>
<p>“No, I need to keep working.” Dani took a deep breath and opened her eyes, her determination clouding out all her other emotions. There was a knock on the conference room door, an officer poked his head in, “Detective Powell? Detective Tarmel? Your suspect has been processed. You can question him now.”</p>
<p>“Got it, thanks,” Dani replied, “Let’s go.” She looked at JT.</p>
<p>----</p>
<p>“Why am I here? Did you find who did this to Jenna?” Dave started blabbering as soon as Dani had opened the door to the interrogation room.</p>
<p>“Will you just chill out?” She said irritably, “We have some questions for you.” She sat down across from Dave. “Did you happen to notice Jenna talking to, or meeting with someone else?”</p>
<p>“Are you asking if she cheated on me? She would never do that!” Dave crossed his arms defensively. Dani sighed.</p>
<p>“No, I’m just asking if you know if there was someone else we can look at since you claim to be innocent,” She huffed.</p>
<p>“I <em>AM</em> innocent,” Dave retorted. Dani wanted to jump across the table. She closed her eyes and calmed herself.</p>
<p>“If you want to help us catch Jenna’s killer, I <em>need</em> your cooperation, Dave,” She grated out. Dave sat silently for a minute. Dani pushed on.</p>
<p>“Let’s start over. Tell me about Jenna, what were her friends like? Did she have any hobbies? Did she have a job?”</p>
<p>Dave sat up and leaned on the table. “She didn’t have many friends, but I guess that’s partly my fault. I got jealous easily, and though she never complained, I could tell she was lonely…” Dave trailed off, “I was such a jerk to her and now she’s dead!” Tears started forming in his eyes. Dani needed more.</p>
<p>“Where did she work? Maybe a coworker knows more?”</p>
<p>“She kept bouncing around jobs, but she did enjoy visiting coffee shops. Said she loved the atmosphere like she was in a movie or a book…” Dave hiccupped a sob. There was a soft knock on the one-way mirror behind Dani.</p>
<p>“Thank you, Dave, I’ll have someone bring you some water.” Dani stood and walked out into the hallway. JT was waiting for her.</p>
<p>“Are you having déjà vu?” he asked. Dani gave him a confused look, “Our guy, Dave, the way he’s describing Jenna sounds very similar to the other dead girlfriend case we worked about a month ago.”</p>
<p>JT was right, Dani remembered that case and how Malcolm had seemed dissatisfied with the conviction of the boyfriend, but there was no more evidence and Christian had clammed up, sealing his fate as guilty.</p>
<p>“If that’s the case, then maybe Christian was innocent after all,” Dani mused, “Maybe we can question him as well.”</p>
<p>“I’ll call the correctional facility where Christian is being held, in the meantime, why don’t you take a break? You look beat,” JT said. She <em>was</em> beat. But she felt like she couldn’t stop now.</p>
<p>“But JT…-,” she started.</p>
<p>“But nothing,” JT interrupted, “We have something, a connection. We’re not going to get there any faster than the time it takes for us to get an appointment with Christian. I’ll finish up here with Dave. Now go. Get rest, take a walk, do <em>something</em>, just take a break.”</p>
<p>Dani nodded. She decided some fresh air might do her some good. She thought of Bright as she left the building. She realized just how much she missed him. She remembered all the times Bright put himself in danger, yet he always seemed to bounce back. This time he hadn’t even gotten back up. She frowned. She felt a twinge of anger at Bright for doing this to himself. He had a family, friends, heck he even had a bird that relied on him.</p>
<p>
  <em>Sunshine</em>
</p>
<p>Dani wondered if anyone had taken care of Sunshine while all this was happening. She checked her key ring and saw she still had a spare key from Gil for when he’d send her to pick up Malcolm. She felt a little more at ease as she walked in the direction of Malcolm’s apartment.</p>
<p>----</p>
<p>Malcolm had been following the man for a few blocks now.</p>
<p><em>Where is he going?</em> Malcolm wondered. They rounded a corner and appeared to reach their destination.</p>
<p>A… Coffee shop?</p>
<p>Malcolm felt a pang of disappointment. Here he was, in a <em>perfect </em>form to go – for lack of a better word – undercover and discover more about the killer. Yet here they were, at a regular old coffee shop. The man entered the building, Malcolm started to follow him to the door, but in his hesitation, the door swung shut. He reached for the door to pull it open but… nothing happened.</p>
<p>“What?” Malcolm said, confused. He tried again, but still, nothing happened. It was like one of those dreams where no matter how hard he tried; he couldn’t interact with the environment.</p>
<p><em>What do I do now?</em> He thought. The answer didn’t take too long to reveal itself as a new customer opened the door. Seizing the opportunity, he slipped in quickly.</p>
<p>The coffee shop was like any other in NYC. It buzzed with patrons and smelled of fresh coffee and pastries. Malcolm looked around and spotted the man as he disappeared behind the counter. Malcolm made his way to the counter to follow when the man reemerged, wearing an apron and a visor. A nameplate on the apron identified him as Eric.</p>
<p><em>Well hello, Eric</em>, Malcolm mused.</p>
<p>“Yo Eric, what’s up?” another employee said as Eric took his place at the register.</p>
<p>“Not much,” Eric replied.</p>
<p>“Hey, did you ever hook up with that girl who keeps coming in here? You seem to really like her.” The co-worker prodded.</p>
<p>“Nah, turns out she has a boyfriend, but he’s a real jerk,” Eric said nonchalantly.</p>
<p>“Another one? Man, you only have eyes for the taken. Well, maybe she’ll come to her senses and dump him.” The co-worker clapped Eric on the shoulder.</p>
<p><em>Another one?</em> Malcolm took note of this.</p>
<p>“Maybe.” Eric turned to help a customer.</p>
<p>For the next few hours, Malcolm stood by the counter where Eric was working, in hopes of getting more information. But luck was not on his side. Eric’s shift was almost over and nothing of interest had happened. Malcolm was puzzling about what he should do next when a new customer entered the shop. She held her head low and kept glancing around at the other customers as if she were nervous to be there. Eric seemed to perk up at the sight of her.</p>
<p>“Well, hi there stranger, what can I get for you?” Eric asked as the woman approached the counter.</p>
<p>“My usual, thanks Eric,” She gave a small smile. He returned the smile as she handed over some cash to pay. Eric’s smile vanished as quickly as it appeared when he looked down to take the change, the woman’s sleeve had moved up to expose large, dark bruises on her arm. Eric frowned deeply.</p>
<p>“Did he do that to you again?” he asked coldly. The woman yanked her arm back.  </p>
<p>“It’s fine, it was an accident,” she mumbled, her happy demeanor gone.</p>
<p>“Lindsey, it’s not <em>fine</em>,” Eric grated out, “Look, my shift is over in a few minutes, let me sit with you?” Lindsey looked at him, nervous.</p>
<p>“Sure, I’ll be over here,” she reluctantly said. Malcolm watched as she went to an isolated table in the corner of the shop. Eric made her order and grabbed a cookie as he made his way over to her. Malcolm followed behind.</p>
<p>“Please, you have to leave him,” Eric begged once he handed off her order.</p>
<p>“I <em>can’t.</em> It’s not that simple,” Lindsey replied, she looked tired.</p>
<p>“Sure it is. Men like that? They’re disgusting, they don’t deserve to have you. You don’t deserve to be <em>hurt</em> by them,” Eric monologed, “If I had you, I would take care of you, you’d never be sad or lonely or scared again.”</p>
<p>Tears were forming in Lindsey’s eyes.</p>
<p>“Eric… I <em>can’t</em>,” she stressed, becoming distraught.</p>
<p>“You CAN!” Eric hissed, smacking the table. Lindsey flinched. “Stay with me, I can hide you until you can get a restraining order or something. <em>Please, </em>you just need to do <em>something</em>, before he kills you.”</p>
<p>“Just think about it,” he said, regaining his composure.</p>
<p>He reached for her hand, but she pulled back.</p>
<p>“Thanks, I – I’ll think about it,” she stammered. Eric sighed.</p>
<p>Malcolm had seen enough; the pieces of the profile were falling into place in his mind. He knew the killer’s name, his occupation, his hunting pattern, and his trigger. It was all coming together. If only he had this information sooner. If only he weren’t -.</p>
<p>Annoyed at the situation, Malcolm left the shop, slipping out as a group of people entered. He was frustrated because he <em>knew</em> where to start to help catch the killer, but he couldn’t <em>tell</em> anybody. He was truly alone. He was confused and angry. He wanted to scream, but that wouldn’t help. He decided to head towards his loft, it was the only place he could think to go.</p>
<p>He came up to the door and tried to go in.</p>
<p><em>Right. I CAN’T</em>.</p>
<p>He pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes.</p>
<p>“I CAN’T DO ANYTHING!” he screamed. He sunk to the pavement, anger falling away into fear.</p>
<p>“What if I never wake up again?” he said to himself. Resting his head on his knees, he sat outside his loft and cried in fear and frustration and failure.</p>
<p>After a while, he stood up, leaned back against the building, and tried to figure out what to do next. Then he noticed something.</p>
<p>It was Dani.</p>
<p>She was walking towards him, her phone to her ear.</p>
<p>“Yeah, I’m okay Gil. I just needed some air. Yeah. JT’s there. I’m going to check on Bright’s bird. Alright, I’ll talk to you later.” She hung up and pulled out some keys.</p>
<p>“Dani?” Malcolm said, unsurprisingly, she didn’t acknowledge him. Instead, she fiddled with the lock.</p>
<p>“God, I wish you could hear me…” Malcolm stood close to her.</p>
<p>Suddenly she looked right at him, or more so <em>through</em> him. It was brief but Malcolm thought he felt the same electricity as before when he touched Gil. The moment passed and Dani turned her attention back to the door. She opened it and went inside, Malcolm followed, silent as a ghost.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This chapter took on a life of its own when I was writing it. I just couldn't stop! I hope you enjoy it! Thanks for all your love and support. Thanks again to my wonderful proofreader Sonshineandshowers!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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